Oscar Fraley
Encyclopedia
Oscar Fraley was the co-author, with Eliot Ness
, of the famous American
memoir
The Untouchables
. Born in Philadelphia
, Pennsylvania
, Fraley grew up across the Delaware River
in Woodbury
, New Jersey
.
He worked for United Press International
as a sports reporter from 1940–1965 but still managed to write during his free time. Over the course of his lifetime, Fraley penned 31 books, including Hoffa, The Real Story (Stein and Day
, 1975). In 1956 he was introduced to Ness while working as a reporter for UPI. It was this encounter that served as the inspiration for The Untouchables. By 1957, Fraley had written most of the proofs for the manuscript of the book. Ness read these proofs shortly before his own death that same year.
The Untouchables went on to sell 1.5 million copies and served as the basis for the television series and movie of the same name.
Oscar Fraley died on Thursday, January 6, 1994 in Fort Lauderdale
’s in Broward General Hospital
. The cause was heart failure after surgery for a strangulated hernia.
Eliot Ness
Eliot Ness was an American Prohibition agent, famous for his efforts to enforce Prohibition in Chicago, Illinois, and the leader of a legendary team of law enforcement agents nicknamed The Untouchables.- Early life :...
, of the famous American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
memoir
Memoir
A memoir , is a literary genre, forming a subclass of autobiography – although the terms 'memoir' and 'autobiography' are almost interchangeable. Memoir is autobiographical writing, but not all autobiographical writing follows the criteria for memoir set out below...
The Untouchables
The Untouchables (1957 book)
The Untouchables is an autobiographical memoir by Eliot Ness and Oscar Fraley, published in 1957. The book deals with the experiences of Eliot Ness, a federal agent in the Bureau of Prohibition, as he fights crime in Chicago in the late 1920s and early 1930s with the help of a special team of...
. Born in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, Fraley grew up across the Delaware River
Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.A Dutch expedition led by Henry Hudson in 1609 first mapped the river. The river was christened the South River in the New Netherland colony that followed, in contrast to the North River, as the Hudson River was then...
in Woodbury
Woodbury, New Jersey
Woodbury is a city in Gloucester County, New Jersey, in the United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, 10,307 residents were counted. Woodbury is the county seat of Gloucester County....
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
.
He worked for United Press International
United Press International
United Press International is a once-major international news agency, whose newswires, photo, news film and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines and radio and television stations for most of the twentieth century...
as a sports reporter from 1940–1965 but still managed to write during his free time. Over the course of his lifetime, Fraley penned 31 books, including Hoffa, The Real Story (Stein and Day
Stein and Day
Stein and Day, Inc. was an American publishing company founded by Sol Stein and his wife Patricia Day in 1962. Stein was both the publisher and the editor-in-chief...
, 1975). In 1956 he was introduced to Ness while working as a reporter for UPI. It was this encounter that served as the inspiration for The Untouchables. By 1957, Fraley had written most of the proofs for the manuscript of the book. Ness read these proofs shortly before his own death that same year.
The Untouchables went on to sell 1.5 million copies and served as the basis for the television series and movie of the same name.
Oscar Fraley died on Thursday, January 6, 1994 in Fort Lauderdale
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, on the Atlantic coast. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 165,521. It is a principal city of the South Florida metropolitan area, which was home to 5,564,635 people at the 2010...
’s in Broward General Hospital
Broward Health
Broward Health, formerly the North Broward Hospital District, is one of the 10 largest health systems in the U.S. Located in Broward County, Florida, Broward Health has the county’s first certified stroke center and only liver transplant program...
. The cause was heart failure after surgery for a strangulated hernia.